VAT input deduction “red-green light” list clarified: MOF–STA Announcement 2026 No. 25
- MOF–STA Announcement 2026 No. 25 (issued 27 August 2026) sets out a two-list rule for input-VAT deductibility on non-taxable transactions, effective 1 September 2026, with retroactive application to matters occurring between 1 January and 31 August 2026 that were not yet processed.
财政部、税务总局2026年第25号公告（2026年8月27日印发）就非应税交易的进项税额抵扣作出”两清单”规定，自2026年9月1日起施行，并对2026年1月1日至8月31日期间已发生未处理的事项追溯适用。
- The green-light list sets out six scenarios where input tax is deductible even though no taxable transaction occurs: insurance indemnity, donations, penalties on unperformed contracts, gratuitous services, related receivables transfer, and non-earmarked fiscal subsidies.
绿灯清单列明六种”虽未发生应税交易但进项税额仍可抵扣”的情形：保险赔付、接受捐赠、合同未履行取得的违约金、无偿提供服务、相关应收账款转让、与销售不直接挂钩的财政补贴。
- The red-light list sets out four scenarios where input tax is not deductible: supplies not constituting a taxable transaction within China, paid equity transfers, dividends from equity holdings, and goods-futures trading (excluding physical delivery).
红灯清单列明四种”进项税额不得抵扣”的情形：不属于在境内发生应税交易的销售、有偿转让股权、持有股权取得的股息红利、货物期货交易（不含实物交割）。
- Eight administrative clarifications (Articles 3–10) address agricultural-product invoices, technical-school exemptions, first-admission tickets, asset-restructuring financial-goods cost basis, immovable acquisition forms, waiver of preferences, telecom freebies, and invoice discounts.
第3至10条共八项征管口径，明确农产品销售发票、技工院校免税、第一道门票、资产重组金融商品买入价、不动产取得形式、放弃优惠、电信附赠、折扣开票等事项。
- For foreign-invested enterprises the announcement mainly removes uncertainty on the boundary between taxable and non-taxable flows — directly affecting how groups treat insurance recoveries, donations, contract penalties, intercompany service waivers, and cross-border supplies.
对外商投资企业而言，本公告的重点在于消除”应税与非应税流动边界”上的不确定性，直接影响集团如何对待保险赔款、接受捐赠、合同违约金、关联服务无偿提供以及跨境供给等事项。
- Legacy rules are repealed: Article 11 voids the first article of CaiShui [2007] No. 127 and related provisions listed in the attachment.
旧规同步废止：第11条废止财税〔2007〕127号第一条及附件所列相关条款。
VAT input deduction “red-green light” list clarified: MOF–STA Announcement 2026 No. 25 | 进项抵扣”红绿灯”清单落地：财政部 税务总局2026年第25号公告解读
Overview
On 27 August 2026, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the State Taxation Administration (STA) issued Announcement 2026 No. 25 — Concerning the Clarification of Value-Added Tax Matters Including Non-Taxable Transactions (财政部 税务总局公告2026年第25号). Built directly on the VAT Law (President Order No. 41) and its implementing regulations (State Council Order No. 826), the announcement resolves a long-contested corner of China’s VAT system: when a payment or receipt does not itself constitute a taxable transaction, can the associated input VAT still be credited?
The answer takes the form of two lists. Article 1 enumerates six “green-light” situations where input tax is deductible even though no taxable transaction has occurred. Article 2 enumerates four “red-light” situations where input tax is not deductible. Articles 3–10 settle eight administrative questions, and Article 11 sets the effective date (1 September 2026) with a retroactive clause covering 1 January–31 August 2026.
Background: the non-taxable transaction carve-out
Under the VAT Law and its implementing regulations, certain receipts are expressly outside the scope of taxable transactions (非应税交易). The implementing regulations (Art. 22) provide that input tax attributable to such non-taxable transactions generally cannot be deducted — the logic being that input tax should not be credited on a cost that does not generate taxable output.
The difficulty always lay at the edges. A manufacturer receives an insurance payout after a fire: is the related input tax deductible, or trapped by a non-taxable receipt? A group waives a management fee for a sister company: does the waived service lock in a non-deductible input on the cost side? Before Announcement 2026 No. 25, taxpayers relied on scattered circulars and local practice. The announcement consolidates the answer.
The green-light list: six deductible cases (Article 1)
Article 1 states that where a taxpayer falls into any of the following, the situation is not a “non-deductible non-taxable transaction” under Implementing Regulation Art. 22, and the corresponding input tax may be deducted from output tax in the normal way:
- Insurance indemnity received as the insured (作为被保险人获得保险赔付). The payout is not a taxable sale, yet the input tax on the insured asset or cost remains creditable.
- Accepting monetary or non-monetary asset donations (接受货币性资产或者非货币性资产捐赠). Donations received are outside taxable scope, but related input tax is deductible.
- Penalties or liquidated damages from an unperformed contract where no taxable transaction occurred (因合同未履行且未发生应税交易而取得违约金等收入). A break-fee or penalty paid because a deal never closed is not a taxable supply; its input tax is nonetheless deductible to the recipient.
- Gratuitous provision of services, excluding gratuitous transfer of financial goods (无偿提供服务，不含无偿转让金融商品). A free service (for example a complimentary value-added service, a membership benefit, or a trial service offered to a customer) does not create a taxable supply, but the provider’s input tax on delivering it stays deductible.
- Transfer of receivables or debts arising from the taxpayer’s own taxable transactions, excluding securities (转让因自身发生应税交易取得的与之相关的应收账款等债权，不含有价证券). Factoring or assignment of trade receivables linked to one’s own sales keeps the input tax deductible; the carve-out for securities is deliberate.
- Fiscal subsidies not directly linked to the revenue or quantity of goods, services, intangibles, or immovables sold (按照有关政策规定取得，且与其销售货物、服务、无形资产、不动产的收入或者数量不直接挂钩的财政补贴). The long-debated “linked vs. unlinked” subsidy test is settled: only subsidies directly tied to sales revenue or volume are treated as taxable; unrelated policy subsidies leave input tax intact.
In practice, the green list tells finance teams that many “non-sale” inflows no longer strand the input tax behind them.
The red-light list: four non-deductible cases (Article 2)
Article 2 confirms four situations that are “non-deductible non-taxable transactions” under Implementing Regulation Art. 22, so the corresponding input tax cannot be credited:
- Supplies that do not constitute a “taxable transaction occurring within China” under VAT Law Art. 4 (销售货物、服务、无形资产、不动产不属于增值税法第四条在境内发生应税交易所列情形的). Where the entire supply is consumed outside China and falls outside the territorial scope, the input tax is not deductible.
- Paid equity transfer, excluding securities (有偿转让股权，不含有价证券). Transfer of equity interests for consideration is outside VAT scope, and its input tax is not deductible; securities are carved out to the separate financial-goods regime.
- Dividends from equity holdings (持有股权取得的股息红利和持有股份公司普通股取得的股息红利). Both non-security equity dividends and ordinary-share dividends are non-taxable and non-deductible on the input side.
- Goods-futures trading, excluding the physical-delivery leg (货物期货交易，不含实物交割环节). Trading of goods-futures contracts is non-taxable; only the physical-delivery portion remains within VAT.
The red list matters most for holding companies, treasury functions, and groups running offshore or exchange-traded activity: the input tax on costs supporting those flows will not credit.
Eight administrative clarifications (Articles 3–10)
Articles 3–10 close gaps that had generated inconsistent local treatment:
- Art. 3 — Agricultural-product sales invoice is defined as the ordinary invoice issued by a self-producing agricultural producer selling self-produced farm products under the VAT-exemption policy. This pins down what counts as a creditable farm-product voucher.
- Art. 4 — Technical schools, senior technical schools, and technician institutes eligible for the education VAT exemption are clarified to include those approved by provincial-and-above human-resources authorities or established under other applicable rules, widening the recognised institution scope.
- Art. 5 — “First-admission ticket” revenue means ticket income from entry through the first main gate only. Tickets for special exhibitions, dedicated performances, or temporary events held in specific internal areas of the venue are not first-admission tickets and fall outside this exemption. The exemption thus protects the core gate while the specified internal-area events remain outside the exemption and are taxed under the normal rules.
- Art. 6 — Asset-restructuring financial goods: where a restructuring is outside VAT scope, if the transferee later resells the financial goods involved, the cost basis (买入价) is determined by the transferor’s original cost basis. This prevents double-counting and preserves continuity across restructurings.
- Art. 7 — Immovable and land-use-right acquisitions under the preferential-policy衔接 Announcement 2026 No. 10 include acquisitions by direct purchase, donation, equity investment, self-construction, debt offset, restructuring, and other forms — confirming the breadth of qualifying acquisition modes.
- Art. 8 — Waiver of a VAT preference requires a written declaration stating the start date, filed with the competent tax authority for record. This formalises the renunciation procedure.
- Art. 9 — Telecom freebies: when a telecom operator bundles a free SIM card or terminal with a service, the total consideration must be separately accounted by applicable tax rate, with VAT computed on each portion — preventing the free gift from being treated as a zero-rated throw-in.
- Art. 10 — Invoice discounts: where price and discount are both stated in the “amount” column of the same invoice, the discounted (ex-tax) price is the sales amount; if not stated in that column, the discount cannot be deducted from the sales amount. This is the classic invoicing-discipline rule, now restated under the new law.
Effective date and retroactive application (Article 11)
- The announcement takes effect on 1 September 2026.
- It repeals the first article of CaiShui [2007] No. 127 (财政部 国家税务总局关于增值税纳税人放弃免税权有关问题的通知) and the related provisions listed in the attachment.
- Matters that occurred between 1 January 2026 and 31 August 2026 but were not yet processed are governed by this announcement. Taxpayers with open periods in that window should re-test any non-taxable-transaction input treatment against the new lists.
Practical notes for foreign-invested enterprises
The announcement is statutory in tone — it tells taxpayers where the deduction boundary sits. For foreign-invested enterprises, the operational consequences follow directly from the two lists:
- Insurance and treasury flows. Multinationals carrying insurance recoveries, break-fees, or intercompany penalties can now credit the related input tax with a clear legal basis under Art. 1.
- Cross-border supplies. The offshore carve-out (red-light No. 1) confirms that supplies wholly consumed outside China fall outside China VAT scope.
- Holding-company costs. Dividends and equity transfers will not credit input tax under red-light Nos. 2–3; groups should cost those activities on a net-of-input basis.
- Policy subsidies. Confirm whether each subsidy received is “directly linked” to sales. Unlinked subsidies no longer endanger the input chain.
Worked examples
*Insurance recovery.* A plant suffers equipment damage and receives a RMB 5m insurance indemnity. Under Art. 1(1) the payout is a green-light receipt; the input VAT on the repaired equipment and the restoration services remains deductible.
*Unperformed contract penalty.* A JV pays a RMB 2m break-fee when an acquisition collapses before any taxable transaction occurs. Under Art. 1(3) the penalty is a green-light item; the JV’s input VAT on advisory and legal costs supporting the aborted deal stays deductible.
*Dividend funding.* A holding company funds itself with dividend income from subsidiaries. Under red-light No. 3 the dividends are non-taxable and their related input tax is non-deductible — the holding company should not expect to credit admin and finance costs against them.
What to do next
- Map “non-sale” inflows (insurance, penalties, donations, subsidies, waived services) against the Art. 1 green list; confirm the related input tax is credited.
- Review holding-company and treasury flows against the Art. 2 red list; re-cost non-deductible activities on a net basis.
- Re-open any VAT period from 1 Jan–31 Aug 2026 still unprocessed and re-test treatment under the new rules.
- Confirm each subsidy’s “direct linkage” status and retain evidence that unlinked subsidies are policy-based.
- Apply the Art. 8 (written waiver), Art. 9 (telecom freebies) and Art. 10 (discount-in-amount-column) disciplines to relevant invoices and contracts.
Sources
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 财政部 税务总局公告2026年第25号《关于明确非应税交易等增值税有关事项的公告》: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c102416/c5252024/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 中华人民共和国增值税法（主席令第四十一号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100009/c5237365/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 中华人民共和国增值税法实施条例（国务院令第八百二十六号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100010/c5246349/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 财政部 税务总局关于增值税法施行后增值税优惠政策衔接事项的公告（2026年第10号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c102416/c5247434/content.html
Related reading
- see also: VAT reform — what foreign firms should note (20-vat-reform-foreign-firms)
- see also: Small-scale taxpayer VAT relief (19-small-scale-taxpayer-vat-relief)
- see also: Labour-dispatch VAT differential treatment (359-labour-dispatch-vat)
进项抵扣”红绿灯”清单落地：财政部 税务总局2026年第25号公告解读
概述
2026年8月27日，财政部、国家税务总局印发《关于明确非应税交易等增值税有关事项的公告》（财政部 税务总局公告2026年第25号）。该公告直接依托《增值税法》（主席令第四十一号）及其实施条例（国务院令第八百二十六号），厘清了中国增值税体系中长期存在实操分歧的一个问题：当一笔收付本身不构成应税交易时，与之相关的进项税额是否仍可抵扣？
答案被归纳为”两张清单”。第一条列举六种”绿灯”情形——虽未发生应税交易，但进项税额可以抵扣；第二条列举四种”红灯”情形——进项税额不得抵扣。第三至十条梳理了八项征管口径问题，第十一条明确施行日期（2026年9月1日），并对2026年1月1日至8月31日期间已发生未处理的事项作出追溯适用规定。
背景：非应税交易的处理难题
依据《增值税法》及其实施条例，部分收款被明确排除在应税交易范围之外（非应税交易）。实施条例第二十二条已明确，归属于此类非应税交易的进项税额一般不得抵扣——其逻辑在于，对一项不产生应税产出的成本，不应允许抵扣其进项税。
真正的难点一直在边界情形。制造商因火灾取得保险赔付：这笔收款的进项税是可抵扣，还是因属非应税收款而”锁死”相关进项？集团为姊妹公司免除一笔管理费：这项无偿服务是否会导致成本侧进项税不可抵扣？在25号公告之前，纳税人只能依赖零散通知与各地口径。2026年第25号公告对此作出系统整合。
绿灯清单：六种可抵扣情形（第一条）
第一条规定，纳税人有下列情形之一，不属于实施条例第二十二条所称”不得抵扣的非应税交易”，相应进项税额可按规定从销项税额中抵扣：
- 作为被保险人获得保险赔付。 赔付本身不是应税销售，但保险标的或成本对应的进项税额仍可抵扣。
- 接受货币性资产或者非货币性资产捐赠。 接受捐赠虽在应税范围之外，相关进项税额仍可抵扣。
- 因合同未履行且未发生应税交易而取得违约金等收入。 因交易最终未达成而支付的违约金、解约金等不属于应税供给，但其进项税对收款方而言仍可抵扣。
- 无偿提供服务（不含无偿转让金融商品）。 免费服务（如向客户提供的附赠增值服务、会员权益服务、试用服务等）不产生应税供给，但提供方交付该服务所发生的进项税额仍可抵扣。
- 转让因自身发生应税交易取得的与之相关的应收账款等债权（不含有价证券）。 与自身销售相关的应收账款保理或转让，其进项税保持可抵扣；特别将”有价证券”排除在外是刻意为之。
- 按照有关政策规定取得，且与其销售货物、服务、无形资产、不动产的收入或者数量不直接挂钩的财政补贴。 长期争议的”挂钩与不挂钩”补贴测试就此落定：仅与销售收入或销量直接挂钩的补贴才视为应税；无关的政策性补贴不影响进项税。
实操上，绿灯清单告诉财务团队：许多”非销售”流入，不再会拖累其背后的进项税。
红灯清单：四种不得抵扣情形（第二条）
第二条确认四种属于实施条例第二十二条所称”不得抵扣的非应税交易”的情形，相应进项税额不得抵扣：
- 销售货物、服务、无形资产、不动产不属于《增值税法》第四条在境内发生应税交易所列情形的。 整项供给在境外消费、落在境内征税范围之外时，进项税不予抵扣。
- 有偿转让股权（不含有价证券）。 有偿转让股权在增值税范围之外，其进项税不予抵扣（有价证券被排除在单独的金融商品规则之外）。
- 持有股权取得的股息红利和持有股份公司普通股取得的股息红利。 无论非有价证券的股权股息，还是普通股股息，均属非应税，进项侧亦不得抵扣。
- 货物期货交易（不含实物交割环节）。 货物期货合约交易属非应税；仅实物交割环节仍纳入增值税。
红灯清单对控股公司、资金财资职能，以及开展离岸或场内交易的集团影响最大：支撑这些流动的成本所对应的进项税将无法抵扣。
八项征管口径澄清（第三至十条）
第三至十条封堵了长期导致各地处理不一的缺口：
- 第三条 — 农产品销售发票，界定为农业生产者销售自产农产品适用免征增值税政策而开具的普通发票，明确了可抵扣农产品凭证的范围。
- 第四条 — 技工学校、高级技工学校、技师学院，对可享受教育增值税免税的院校范围作出澄清，纳入经省级及以上人社部门批准成立或依其他规定设立的院校，拓宽了认可机构范围。
- 第五条 — “第一道门票收入”，指观众进入首道大门收取的门票收入；在场馆内部特定区域举办特别展览、专场演出、临时活动等收取的门票收入，不属于第一道门票收入，不享受该项免税。此举在保护核心门禁免税的同时，将场馆内特定区域专项活动的门票明确排除在免税之外，仍按相关规定征收增值税。
- 第六条 — 资产重组金融商品：对不征收增值税的资产重组业务，若接收方后续再转让所涉金融商品，其买入价以重组转让方的买入价确定。这避免重复计算，保持重组前后的连续性。
- 第七条 — 不动产和土地使用权取得形式，依据2026年第10号优惠衔接公告取得的范围，包括直接购买、接受捐赠、接受投资入股、自建、抵债、资产重组等各种形式——确认了合格取得方式的广度。
- 第八条 — 放弃增值税优惠，须以书面形式提交放弃声明并注明起始时间，报主管税务机关备案。此举将旧的放弃程序规范化。
- 第九条 — 电信附赠：电信运营商附带赠送用户识别卡、电信终端等货物时，应将全部价款按各自适用税率分别核算，分别计缴增值税——防止附赠物被当作零税率的搭售。
- 第十条 — 折扣开票：价款与折扣额在同一张发票”金额”栏分别注明的，以折扣后不含税价款为销售额；未在该栏注明的，折扣额不得从销售额中扣除。这是经典的发票纪律规则，在新法下再次明确。
施行日期与追溯适用（第十一条）
- 本公告自 2026年9月1日 起施行。
- 同时废止财税〔2007〕127号（财政部 国家税务总局关于增值税纳税人放弃免税权有关问题的通知）第一条及附件所列相关条款。
- 2026年1月1日至2026年8月31日期间已发生未处理的事项，按本公告规定执行。在该窗口内仍有未结期间的纳税人，应依据新清单重新审视非应税交易的进项处理。
对外商投资企业的实务提示
本公告立场属成文法性质——它只是告诉纳税人抵扣边界在哪里。对外商投资企业而言，实操影响直接源于上述两张清单：
- 保险与财资流动。 持有保险赔款、解约费或关联违约金的跨国集团，如今可依据第一条就相关进项税获得清晰抵扣依据。
- 跨境供给。 离岸除外情形（红灯第1项）确认：完全在境外消费的供给不属中国增值税范围。
- 控股公司成本。 股息与股权转让依红灯第2、3项不抵扣进项税；集团应以”不含进项”的口径核算此类活动成本。
- 政策性补贴。 确认所收每项补贴是否”直接挂钩”于销售。不挂钩补贴不再危及抵扣链条。
实务示例
*保险赔付。* 某工厂设备受损，获赔500万元保险赔款。依第一条第（一）项，该赔付属绿灯收款；修复设备及复原服务对应的进项税仍可抵扣。
*合同未履行违约金。* 某合资企业在收购未达成、未发生应税交易前支付200万元解约费。依第一条第（三）项，该违约金属绿灯项目；合资企业就中止交易所发生顾问、法律费用的进项税保持可抵扣。
*股息筹资。* 某控股公司以子公司股息为其自身融资。依红灯第3项，股息属非应税，其相关进项税不得抵扣——控股公司不应预期就管理、财务费用抵扣进项。
下一步建议
- 将”非销售”流入（保险、违约金、捐赠、补贴、无偿服务）对照第一条绿灯清单逐项排查，确认相关进项税已抵扣。
- 依据第二条红灯清单复核控股公司与财资流动；以净额口径重新核算不可抵扣活动。
- 重新打开2026年1月1日至8月31日之间任何尚未处理的增值税属期，按新规则复核进项处理。
- 确认每项补贴的”直接挂钩”状态；留存证据表明不挂钩补贴系政策属性而非销售挂钩。
- 对涉及事项，依第八条（书面放弃优惠）、第九条（电信附赠）与第十条（折扣金额栏注明）更新发票与合同模板。
来源
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 财政部 税务总局公告2026年第25号《关于明确非应税交易等增值税有关事项的公告》: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c102416/c5252024/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 中华人民共和国增值税法（主席令第四十一号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100009/c5237365/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 中华人民共和国增值税法实施条例（国务院令第八百二十六号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100010/c5246349/content.html
- 国家税务总局政策法规库 — 财政部 税务总局关于增值税法施行后增值税优惠政策衔接事项的公告（2026年第10号）: https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c102416/c5247434/content.html
相关阅读
- 见：增值税改革——外资企业注意事项（20-vat-reform-foreign-firms）
- 见：小规模纳税人增值税优惠（19-small-scale-taxpayer-vat-relief）
- 见：劳务派遣增值税差额处理（359-labour-dispatch-vat）